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Sazerac has operations in Kentucky, Virginia,
Maryland, California, New Hampshire, Maine,
Virginia and Montreal and produces a wide range of
offerings in whiskey, vodka, gin, tequila, rum, brandy,
cognac, cocktails, cordials, liqueurs, “shooters” and other
categories. The names of Goldring’s more recognizable
labels roll easily off his tongue … the wildly popular
Fireball, Sazerac Rye, Peychaud’s Bitters, George T.
Stagg, W. L. Weller, Old Charter, Pappy Van Winkle
and Buffalo Trace among them.
Among the distilleries owned by Sazerac,it is the Buffalo
Trace Distillery that whiskey writers from across the
globe consider to be the best in the world, consistently
recognized for its outstanding quality and innovation,
and as such garnering world wide media attention. In
2013 Buffalo Trace Distillery was named a National
Historic Landmark, one of only 2,500 designations in
the United States. The attention is well deserved, and
something Goldring has never taken for granted.
“You can’t just go out and open a distillery, as it takes
a long aging process to make a good bourbon,” explains
Goldring.“We are aging whiskey anywhere from three to
23 years, and there are dozens of formulas in the process.
I am constantly looking for improvement in the product
lines, never settling for anything less. Sometimes I believe
it’s tough to create anything better than what we have,
but we’re going to continue to work at it.”
It’s that Holy Grail thing again …
Today, labels from Goldring’s deep portfolio are the
top-selling brands in their categories in Rouses Markets
across the South.
But the greatest benefit to the retail history with Rouses
Markets rests well beyond the well-stocked liquor shelves.
Fast Friends
While products from Goldring’s holdings have sold at
Rouses Markets for generations, the two had never crossed
until they met at an event both were attending. As Donald
Rouse recalls,“Everybody was dressed immaculately except
for me and this one other guy, both of us in our traditional,
more casual clothes. And we just sort of gravitated toward
one another and introduced ourselves.”
“Kindred spirits is how I describe us,” says Goldring, the
two businessmen sitting at opposite ends of a sofa in an
office above the Rouses Market on Baronne Street in
New Orleans’Warehouse District on a rainy afternoon.
“My father had recently passed away, and meeting Bill and gaining
him as a trusted friend filled a void for me at a time when I needed
it. All these years later, being able to pick up the phone and pick his
brain on things is something I greatly appreciate. Bill has been an
extraordinary presence because of his knowledge and his experiences.”
It was around the same time when Rouse was looking to expand his
retail operations to include a location in downtown New Orleans,
and he set his sights on acquiring the old Sewell Cadillac building on
Baronne Street. But there were a few last minute hurdles Rouse was
having difficulty navigating with regard to licensing and permitting.
“One phone call to Bill and he helped us get across the finish line
and land the location, just as we were on the brink of losing the
opportunity, and I’ll always value that support,” said Rouse. The
market opened in November 2011 and has since garnered national
attention. The Baronne Street location, it is fair to say, has spurred
the burgeoning growth of the city’s business district.
Southern Comfort
The story goes that Southern Comfort, aka SoCo, was created in 1874
by bartender Martin Wilkes Heron at McCauley’s Tavern in the lower
Garden District of New Orleans. Heron took harsh, unrefined whiskeys
and mixed them with his own blend of spices and fruits. He initially
called his new peach-apricot whiskey Cuffs & Buttons. The name
was changed to Southern Comfort in 1885 for the World’s Industrial
& Cotton Exposition in New Orleans where it was touted as “The
Grand Old Drink of the South.” SoCo went on to win gold medals at
the World’s Fair in Paris in 1900 and again at the World’s Fair in St.
Louis in 1904. The iconic Southern Comfort label depicting Woodland
Plantation in West Point á la Hache debuted in 1934.
PROFILE